Chapter 76: A Performance True to Nature (Part Three)

In front of the palace gates, everyone was dumbfounded. Gazing at the Ninth Prince, whose body had been reduced to a bloody pulp, a sense of absurdity welled up in their hearts. Who had ever heard of a prince being killed right outside the imperial palace? And not by an assassin lurking in the shadows, but blatantly slain with a single blow.

Even now, both the soldiers and the recently arrived Seventh Prince sensed that something was terribly amiss. The imperial palace was always guarded by two formidable Spirit Emperor-level experts, whose sole duty was to protect its safety. Yet, despite the commotion and the gravity of the incident at the gates, not a single guardian emerged.

Not only were they stunned—Ye Feng himself was a little surprised. The emperor’s sons turned out to be such incompetents? The Ninth Prince, with his meager early-stage Spirit King strength, had been killed by a mere slap?

Ye Feng looked up, and his gaze fell upon another young man dressed in yellow silk robes, slowly retreating. He spoke, “You must be the Seventh Prince, Tang Chao?”

No sooner had he spoken than the young prince collapsed to the ground in terror, stammering, “It wasn’t me... I had nothing to do with it, everything was arranged by the Ninth! I truly didn’t do anything...”

Ye Feng frowned even deeper. “Are all the emperor’s sons this useless? If so, the dynasty’s downfall can’t be far off.”

“These two good-for-nothings seem to serve no purpose but to sow chaos in the palace,” Ye Feng mused. He shook his head. “Believe it or not, I certainly do.”

“If you can name the mastermind behind this, I might consider sparing you. But don’t play any tricks. If I wish to kill you, no matter where you hide, I will find you.”

Ye Feng regarded the Seventh Prince, who was nearly incontinent with fear, and felt a pang of disappointment. He never imagined his illustrious reputation would be sullied by two such fools. He drew closer, bent down, and smiled.

“I swear it’s the truth, Master Ye! Everything was orchestrated by the Ninth. He thought our little sister was a hindrance, feared she’d be a stumbling block, so...” The limp Seventh Prince clutched Ye Feng’s pants, disregarding the soldiers whose eyes threatened to fall from their sockets.

“Oh? Are you telling the truth?” Ye Feng’s brow knit, a shadow flickering in his eyes. He sensed something was wrong.

There was no doubt these two princes were involved in the assassination attempt. The Seventh Prince was not as inept as the Ninth, but only marginally better—perhaps with the intelligence of a ten-year-old.

Yet how could Spirit Land’s secret agents entrust four assassins to such incompetents? To trap Ye Feng so perfectly, exploiting his weaknesses and coordinating such a seamless plan—just thinking about it chilled Ye Feng to the bone. The true mastermind behind this was the most formidable adversary he had encountered in this life.

Ye Feng preferred swift, decisive solutions—namely, killing. His opponent had exploited this ruthlessly. First, they wounded him grievously, making the culprit obvious but leaving no outlet for his anger. When his rage peaked, they deliberately exposed a flaw.

Knowing Ye Feng’s nature, once he identified the mastermind, he would surely storm in with his blade. But the perpetrators turned out to be two princes. Now things became interesting.

“A clever scheme. If I kill these two princes, the Ye family and the imperial household will inevitably become estranged. Even a slight fissure will invite opportunists to exploit it.” At this thought, Ye Feng cast a sympathetic glance at the Seventh Prince, who was smirking discreetly, and sighed on behalf of the emperor.

Clearly, the two had been used as pawns and then as bait—thoroughly exploited without waste, making full use of their noble birth.

“So, I’ve caught someone’s attention. I’ve been too conspicuous lately,” Ye Feng pondered.

“If this is a plot targeting both the Ye family and the imperial household, the planner knows my temperament inside out. Clearly, I’ve been under surveillance for a long time.” This brought Ye Feng’s mind to the servants in the Ye Mansion; when he first arrived at the capital, someone had claimed he worked for Duke Billis.

“Hmph! The Ye family is truly bold—daring to kill a prince right outside the palace. Ye Feng, are you planning a rebellion?” Suddenly, a voice tinged with anger echoed from deep within the palace.

Hearing this, Ye Feng nodded inwardly. There were indeed sharp minds in the palace. From that single sentence, it was clear the imperial household intended to cooperate with the Ye family to put on a convincing show.

“Well then, old emperor, your royal heirs can scheme against my Ye family, but my kin can’t seek justice?” From above the palace, a violent voice boomed from within a mass of dark clouds—the giant ape, ready to fight to the death at a moment’s notice.

Ye Feng silently gave a thumbs-up overhead. This move, countering the scheme with a scheme, was executed to perfection. Not only was the timing impeccable, even the actors performed true to nature.

“Monster! Take Ye Feng away. Later, I, Tang Hen, will personally visit Ye Mansion to demand justice from Ye Lao Wu!” Another voice from the palace drifted out, its tone ambiguous—neither joyful nor angry.

“Hmph! We’re leaving...”

Clearly, the giant ape was very wary of Emperor Tang Hen. With a cold snort, he conjured a massive hand, scooped Ye Feng into the air, and floated toward Ye Mansion.

Deep within the palace, Emperor Tang Hen and two elders sat with tea, wearing wry smiles.

“If only our Tang family had such a descendant, how could we fear Spirit Land’s invasion?” One elder blew on his tea and shook his head.

“Ah!” Hearing this, Emperor Tang Hen sighed softly. “That young man from the Ye family may well be the key to turning the tide for both Ye and Tang.”

“Sixth Uncle! When Tang Chao returns, you’ll personally keep watch over him. And have Eighth Uncle stage another act, lest Spirit Land suspect anything.”

Tang Hen shook his head, his words betraying deep disappointment in his own sons.

Ye Mansion.

Ye Feng, smiling, explained to the still furious giant ape.

“Uncle Ape, thanks to your genuine performance, this act was all the more convincing.” Ye Feng recalled the recent events, his expression lively.

“Hmph! I’ll send my brothers from the forest to flatten that old emperor’s palace!” Uncomprehending, the giant ape continued to roar.

Helpless, Ye Feng patiently explained again, soothing the beast who had been agitated several times. Helpless, Ye Feng patiently explained again, soothing the beast who had been agitated several times.